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Putting a Price on Reducing Oklahoma City Rear End-Accidents

February 25, 2015February 25, 2015

Rear-end accidents are some of the most common of all motor vehicle accidents in Tulsa, Oklahoma City and surrounding areas and in surrounding areas statewide and nationwide. Around a third of collisions that occurred in 2015 were rear-end accidents according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

With so many rear-end collisions occurring, a car accident lawyer knows that reducing these types of accidents could significantly reduce the number of people who are hurt or even killed in car accidents. The Washington Post recently considered what the costs of reducing these crashes would be through the use of technology.

How Much Does Rear-end Accident Reduction Cost?

The Washington Post interviewed a professor at Carnegie Melon who is designing self-driving vehicles. He indicated that there are very good rear-end accident prevention systems that have already been developed and that are found in many vehicles today. The parts to construct these systems generally cost somewhere between $700 and $800.

The systems typically involve the use of a camera and radar, which are designed to detect when the car is about to strike something in its path. When an obstacle is detected, the driver is alerted so the motorist will have a chance to brake. The NHTSA has reported that in a large number of rear-end accident crashes, the driver in the rear vehicle never even hits the brakes at all before striking the car in front. In many other accidents, the driver starts to brake but does not have time to brake fully. If the motorist received a warning from the car, the motorist would be more likely to act.

However, the rear-end accident prevention systems don't just leave it up to the driver. If the motorist doesn't brake when warned, then an automatic emergency braking system can actually cause the car to brake without input from the driver.

These systems were available in around 27 percent of 2015 model vehicles. Volvo has also included automatic braking systems standard since 2008.

The systems have also been shown to be very effective at reducing rear-end accident risks. In Volvo CX60 vehicles with the crash prevention systems installed, drivers made around 20 percent fewer crash claims as compared with people in similar cars that didn't have rear-end accident prevention systems.

Further, a study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showed a four percent decline in overall crash reports and a 40 percent decline in bodily injury liability claims. This means that not only are accidents less likely to happen, but when they do, they are less likely to be serious. This can be explained by the fact that since the rear-end crash prevention systems brake, or cause the driver to brake, the impact of the crash is reduced even if it cannot be avoided.

Although these systems are effective, the question is whether consumers will pay for them. Although the cost of installation is relatively low, consumers are likely to be charged between $2,000 and $3,000 due to markup. These costs, however, may be offset by future reduced insurance premiums and by added safety benefits.